Mid Hants Railway Operational Matters

Cheers for clearing that up. I never got round to taking a trip behind W24. Maybe one day W24 come back a cross the Solent again and pay a return visit.

 

Yes W24 did run round at each end. I was lucky to travel with a former driver of W24, Ray Maxfield. It recalled some great memories. ( Even better when Jim managed to shut down the "Thumper" for some of the time.)

Thanks to everyone who arranged the event.

Cheers, Neil

 

The DMMU was (is really as it is now at GWSR) vacuum braked. The engine was running solely to provide air for the air horn I recall correctly. The final drives were locked in neutral on the DMMU and the brake was made by the Terrier.

I enjoyed working Stepney. Driving her made up for her apparently making me cry when I was a baby. According to my parents it was the first steam engine i ever saw and i didnt like it much!

Sent from my SM-A405FN using Tapatalk

 

Still got evidence of its Mid-Hants ownership if you know where to look!

 

My advice FWIW .... make it a bucket list "must do". Calbourne's an absolutely magnificent loco and completely worth the effort see at work in it's native surroundings. Arrive early and get first dibs on a seat in the superb ex-SECR saloon ... even among the many gems on the IWSR it just makes such a refreshing change from anything else I've experienced elsewhere. Go on .... you know you want to!

 

Can you actually isolate the exhausters on a DMMU if the engine is running?

 

As I understand it, the exhausters on a DMMU do not connect to the train pipe unless the driver's brake valve is in the running or release positions. Otherwise it only exhausts the (high vacuum) reservoir pipe. The reservoir pipe (blue?) is only connectable to the reservoir pipe on another DMMU. Thus even though the exhausters would be running, it would have no effect on the train pipe.

 

Ah, maybe that's the ocassion I'm thinking about?

 

The only other steam loco that has hauled the Thumper as far as I am aware is Met 1.

 

These were taken on 7th March 2014.

 

Met 1 has visited twice. Once in 2009 when it ran with two mk1’s plus a van and then again in 2014 when it ran with 205025.

 

But the high vacuum side charges the train pipe through the feed valve and the drivers brake valve. I can see that it might work if the brake valve is held in the lap position but the lap position is not a normal running position and the lap facility of the brake would not be available to be used as such .
Whenever I've been involved with a steam loco hauling a DMMU, the engines have not been run but that does mean there would be no air for the horn.

 

Boy, oh Boy, it was Sooooooo good to get back atop the hill yesterday!!!

Over a socially distanced brew 1st thing, whilst watching the Pway get the Wickham onto the mainline, and a good chatch up chat, it was time to wander down the yard, or should that be, guide a trolley load of kit & other bits & pieces that two of us had bought along for use on the troublesome trucks & elsewhere on the railway in general!

Progress was made on three fronts over the course of the day, even with all the banter going on!

We picked up where we left off on the 2 plank, with the lower of the planks bought up to 1st glosss, as the top one needed some more TLC before it can be bought into line. The wagons in the rake all had the brake linkages oiled, along with the screw couplings & three wagons were found to be in need of some TLC before hey are fit to run again....... in the yard, several wagons with various ailments were attended to - they ain't called troublesome trucks for nothing!!

I popped down to Ropley after & found the Urie lot were back & progreesing with 499, the 50 lads were also working on 50 027 & there was a hive of activity centered on the pit road, which is recieving some well earned TLC.

A couple of pics from yesterday.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/duty_druid/50005150616/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/duty_druid/50004626253/in/photostream/

 

It's quite strange seeing that photo of finished locos in the shed at Ropley - Normally it's too busy and full of restoration projects.

 

Another short YouTube video has been produced by the railway.

 

Good to see the MHR back in action during the weekend, though this was for a Staff Training day in relation to eventual re-opening

What was most surprising was the stock used in the 3 train timetable, you had the Ivatt tank, Lion roaring for the first time in several months and then a certain blue tank engine on a small goods set.

 

I wonder why?

 

Had another good day atop the hill yesterday, sun shining, good banter & trains runing!

Progress was made on several fronts, the Gunpwoder Van had old expired sections of the roof cut out & new sections welded in, the underframe of the Maroon CCT has now progressed to undercoating, and the two plank continues to recieve attention, though what whas deemed a small bit of TLC has evolved into a longer project!

Various vans in the yard with niggles were also attended to, along with getting to grips with some of the troublesome trucks in Bennett's, following last weeks discoveries!

A few pics from the day.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/duty_druid/50028675828/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/duty_druid/50029475577/in/photostream/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/duty_druid/50029476832/in/photostream/

 

Why not? If you have to think about competency, then that must mean steam and diesel if that is what your line operates. As to which specific locos - presumably choice is based on a mixture of current availability, cost, and not using up mileage on your core fleet if you don’t have to. When we have our acclimatisation trips, I wouldn’t be surprised to see 178 in use for similar reasons

Tom

 

As Tom said, you'll need both Steam and Diesel out.
It makes sense to use the 2 smallest steam locos on the line for re-familiarisation with the route, they will cost the least to steam.